Recording apparatus, reproducing apparatus, recording and reproducing apparatus, recording method, reproducing method, recording and reproducing method, and record medium

ABSTRACT

Changes of a user&#39;s emotion that occurs when content is reproduced and a user&#39;s surrounding environment that occurs when the content is reproduced are recorded as sensing meta data and content is reproduced in a reproducing mode corresponding to the recorded sensing meta data. Content supplied from a content providing section  11  is normally reproduced. A human body sensor  24  measures biological information of a user of content. An environmental sensor  25  measures a user&#39;s surrounding environment. A sensing meta data generating section  19  generates sensing meta data using information detected by at least one of the human body sensor  24  and the environmental sensor  25 . A recording processing section  20  records the generated sensing meta data to a record medium  21 . A reproducing processing section  23  reproduces sensing meta data. A reproducing control section  12  reproduces content in a reproducing mode that changes corresponding to the reproduced sensing meta data.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a recordingmethod that record sensing meta data that are sensed when content isreproduced. In addition, the present invention relates to a reproducingapparatus, a recording and reproducing apparatus, a reproducing method,and a recoding and reproducing method that reproduce contentcorresponding to sensing meta data recorded in a recording medium.Moreover, the present invention relates to a record medium in whichsensing meta data have been recorded.

BACKGROUND ART

Additional data referred to as meta data are commonly recorded in recordmediums for content such as movies, music, photos, and so forth suchthat the meta data are associated with the content. When content is amovie, the actors, actresses, director, year of production, plot, and soforth of the movie are recorded as meta data to a record medium. Whencontent is music content, the title, genre, performing duration,performers, and so forth of the music are recorded as meta data to arecord medium. These meta data can be reproduced independently from thecontent. Thus, the viewer/listener of content can easily know a featureof content using meta data.

Content of these movies, music, and so forth is generally narrative andthe mental state of the viewer/listener of content changes correspondingto the story development and scenes. In other words, the mental state ofthe viewer/listener changes, namely he or she is surprised, impressed,disembarrassed, and/or excited corresponding to scenes of content. Thechanges of the mental state of the viewer/listener are expressed bychanges of appearance, presence of perspiration, changes of heart rate,changes of blood pressure, and so forth. The changes of the mental stateof the viewer/listener largely depend on the scenes and storydevelopment of content and so do the surrounding environment in which heor she is viewing and/or listening to content. For example, if theviewer/listener views a picture of the south pole on a hot midsummerday, he or she tends to feel comfortable. In contrast, if theviewer/listener views the same picture of the south pole on a coldmidwinter day, he or she may feel uncomfortable. Thus, the mental stateof the viewer/listener variously changes corresponding to scenes ofcontent and the surrounding environment in which he or she is viewingand/or listening to content.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-344904 describes acontent reproducing apparatus and so forth that measure the reactions ofthe viewer/listener against content being reproduced and generateevaluation values based on the measured results as well as reproducecontent. The content reproducing apparatus and so forth described inJapanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-344904 change thebrightness and sound level of a picture after a predetermined scene onthe basis of the evaluated values.

The mental state of the user against content reproduced in the past, hisor her surrounding environment, and the use mode of content depend onhim or her. An impression of whether the viewer/listener was impressedor excited by a particular scene of content that he or she viewed and/orlistened to just depends on him or her. The user may memorize theimpression of content in association therewith. If content is reproducedat a user's memorable location, he or she may memorize the location inassociation with the content.

In the related art, meta data recorded in association with content areinformation of for example the performers, audiences, plot, and so forthadded by the content production side. It is impossible to cause thechanges of a user's emotion and his or her surrounding environment thatoccurred when content was reproduced to recur. In the contentreproducing apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-OpenNo. 2002-344904, a reproducing mode of content is changed correspondingto a user's reaction against content being reproduced. However, thisrelated art reference does not describe technologies of which changes ofa user's emotion and his or her surrounding environment that occurs whencontent is reproduced are recorded as meta data.

If the mental state of the user and his or her surrounding environmentthat occurs when content is reproduced can be recorded as meta data inassociation with content, when the same content is reproducedcorresponding to the meta data, the mental sate and surroundingenvironment of the user that occurred when the content was reproducedcan be caused to recur.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a recordingapparatus and a recording method that allow changes of a user's emotionand his or her surrounding environment that occurs when content isreproduced to be recorded as sensing meta data to a record medium.

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide areproducing apparatus, a reproducing method, a recording and reproducingapparatus, and a recording and reproducing method that allow content tobe reproduced corresponding to sensing meta data that have beenrecorded.

Moreover, another object of the present invention is to provide a recordmedium in which changes of a user's emotion and his or her surroundingenvironment have been recorded as sensing meta data.

The present invention is a recording apparatus, comprising a contentproviding section which provides content; at least one of a biologicalinformation measuring section which measures user's biologicalinformation which occurs when the content is reproduced and anenvironmental measuring section which measures a user's surroundingenvironment which occurs when the content is reproduced; a sensing metadata generating section which generates sensing meta data usinginformation detected by at least one of the biological informationmeasuring section and the environment measuring section; and a recordingprocessing section which records the generated sensing meta data and thecontent such that they are associated with each other.

In addition, the present invention is a reproducing apparatus whichreproduces provided content, comprising a reproducing processing sectionwhich reproduces sensing meta data generated using information detectedby at least one of a biological information measuring section whichmeasured user's biological information which occurred when content wasreproduced and an environment measuring section which measured a user'ssurrounding environment which occurred when the content was reproducedfrom a record medium; and a reproducing controlling section whichreproduces the content in a reproducing mode corresponding to thesensing meta data.

In addition the present invention is a recording and reproducingapparatus, comprising a content providing section which providescontent; at least one of a biological information measuring sectionwhich measures user's biological information that occurs when thecontent is reproduced and an environmental measuring section whichmeasures a user's surrounding environment which occurs when the contentis reproduced; a sensing meta data generating section which generatessensing meta data using information detected by at least one of thebiological information measuring section and the environment measuringsection; a recording processing section which records the generatedsensing meta data in association with the content; a reproducingprocessing section which reproduces the sensing meta data from therecord medium; and a reproducing controlling section which reproducesthe content in a reproducing mode corresponding to the sensing metadata.

In addition, the present invention is a recording method, comprising thesteps of providing content; generating sensing meta data usinginformation of at least one of user's biological information whichoccurs when the content is reproduced and user's surrounding environmentwhich occurs when the content is reproduced; and recording the generatedsensing meta data and the content such that they are associated witheach other.

In addition, the present invention is a reproducing method ofreproducing provided content, comprising the steps of reproducingsensing meta data generated using information of at least one of user'sbiological information measured when content was reproduced and a user'ssurrounding environment measured when the content was reproduced from arecord medium; and reproducing the content in a reproducing modecorresponding to the sensing meta data.

In addition, the present invention is a recording and reproducingmethod, comprising the steps of providing content; generating sensingmeta data using information of at least one of user's biologicalinformation which occurs when the content is reproduced and a user'ssurrounding environment which occurs when the content is reproduced;recording the generated sensing meta data and the content such that theyare associated with each other; reproducing the sensing meta data from arecord medium; and reproducing the content in a reproducing modecorresponding to the sensing meta data.

In addition, the present invention is a record medium in which sensingmeta data generated using information of at least one of user'sbiological information measured when content was reproduced and a user'ssurrounding environment measured when the content was reproduced havebeen recorded such that the sensing meta data are associated with thecontent.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a structure of a recording andreproducing apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing heart rates measured by a humanbody sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary relationship betweencounted times and reproducing positions of content in the recoding andreproducing apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing hart rates associated withreproducing positions of content;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a flow of a process of recording sensingmeta data according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a flow of a process of reproducingcontent corresponding to sensing meta data according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Next, with reference to the accompanying drawings, an embodiment of thepresent invention will be described. In this specification, content isat least one of picture information and audio information. Each contentis identified by an identifier (hereinafter sometimes referred to as acontent ID (Identifier)). Picture information includes all types ofvisually recognizable information such as pictures, still images (forexample photos), graphics, electronics books, text information, and soforth displayed together therewith. Audio information includes all typesof acoustically recognizable information such as music, natural sounds,talking voices, and so forth. In addition, a viewer/listener who viewsand listens to picture content, a listener who listens to audio content,and so forth are generally referred to as the user.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 represents a main structure of arecording and reproducing apparatus according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. The recording and reproducing apparatus 1 includes acontent providing section 11, a reproducing control section 12, apicture signal processing section 13, a picture signal output section14, an audio signal processing section 15, an audio signal outputsection 16, a human body sensing data processing section 17, anenvironmental sensing data processing section 18, a sensing meta datagenerating section 19, a recording processing section 20, a recordmedium 21, a pattern storage section 22, and a reproducing processingsection 23.

The content providing section 11 is a record medium or a storage mediumsuch as an optical disc (for example, a CD-ROM (Compact Disc-Read OnlyMemory) or a DVD-ROM (Digital Versatile Disc-Read only Memory)), asemiconductor memory, or a magnetic tape. The content providing section11 is not limited to such a record medium or such a storage mediumattachable to and detachable from the recording and reproducingapparatus 1, but may be a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) built in the recordingand reproducing apparatus 1. The content providing section 11 includes acontent distribution server or the like that distributes content througha television broadcast such as a ground analog/digital broadcast or a BS(Broadcasting satellite) digital broadcast or the Internet.

As will be described later, the content providing section 11 suppliescontent corresponding to a content ID that the user has specified andinput to the reproducing control section 12.

In the normal reproducing mode, the reproducing control section 12performs a process of reproducing content provided by the contentproviding section 11. The reproducing process that the reproducingcontrol section 12 performs depends on a means that provides content.When content has been recoded on an optical disc, the reproducingcontrol section 12 reads a signal with an optical pickup, performs ademodulating process and an error correcting process for the signal thathas been read, and temporarily writes the processed signal to a buffermemory. The reproducing control section 12 performs a demultiplexingprocess for the signal written in the buffer memory and demultiplexesthe signal, which has been multiplexed, into a picture signal and anaudio signal. The demultiplexed picture signal is supplied to thepicture signal processing section 13, whereas the demultiplexed audiosignal is supplied to the audio signal processing section 15.

When a character signal has been recorded to an optical disc, thecharacter signal demultiplexed by the demultiplexing process is suppliedto a character signal processing section (not shown). When necessary,the character signal for which a decoding process and so forth have beenperformed by the processing section is superimposed with the picturesignal and then the resultant signal is provided to the user.

When content is provided through a BS digital broadcast, the reproducingcontrol section 12 performs a carrier wave selecting process forselecting a desired carrier wave from a received radio wave, ademodulating process, an error correcting process, a descramblingprocess, a demultiplexing process, a packet selecting process, and soforth such that a desired picture PES (Packetized Elementary Stream) andaudio PES are extracted. The selected picture PES is supplied to thepicture signal processing section 13, whereas the audio PES is suppliedto the audio signal processing section 15. In such a manner, thereproducing control section 12 performs proper processes correspondingto the content providing section 11. Processes that the reproducingcontrol section 12 performs may be changed.

Sensing meta data are supplied from the reproducing processing section23 to the reproducing control section 12. Besides the normal reproducingmode, the reproducing control section 12 performs a reproducing processfor content supplied from the content providing section 11 in areproducing mode corresponding to the sensing meta data. Details of thesensing meta data will be described later.

The picture signal processing section 13 performs a process of decodinga supplied picture signal and other processes. The picture signalsupplied to the picture signal processing section 13 has beencompression-encoded according to for example MPEG (Moving Picture CodingGroup) 2 system. Thus, the picture signal processing section 13 performsa process of decoding the picture signal that has beencompression-encoded. In addition, when necessary, the picture signalprocessing section 13 performs a D/A (Digital to Analog) convertingprocess of converting the decoded digital picture signal into an analogpicture signal. The picture signal that has been converted into ananalog signal is supplied to the picture signal output section 14.

The picture signal output section 14 is a monitor such as a CRT (CathodeRay Tube), an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), or an organic EL (ElectroLuminescence). The picture signal output section 14 reproduces thepicture signal supplied from the picture signal processing section 13.

The audio signal processing section 15 performs a process of decodingthe supplied audio signal and other processes. The audio signal suppliedto the audio signal processing section 15 has been compression-encodedaccording to for example MP3 (MPEG1-Audio Layer-III) system or MPEG2 AAC(Advanced Audio Coding) system. Thus, the audio signal processingsection 15 performs a process of decoding the audio signal that has beencompression-encoded. When necessary, the audio signal processing section15 performs a D/A (Digital to Audio) converting process of convertingthe decoded digital audio signal into an analog signal. The audio signalthat has been converted into an analog signal is supplied to the audiosignal output section 16.

The audio signal output section 16 is for example a speaker or aheadphone. The audio signal output section 16 reproduces the audiosignal supplied from the audio signal processing section 15.

The picture signal processing section 13 and the audio signal processingsection 15 decode the picture signal and the audio signal on the basisof timing information such as a DTS (Decoding Time Stamp) that has beenrecorded on an optical disc along with content or that has beenmultiplexed as a PES with a broadcast wave. In addition, since thepicture signal and the audio signal are synchronized with timinginformation such as a PTS (Presentation Time Stamp) that has beenrecoded on an optical disc along with content or that has beenmultiplexed as a PES with a broadcast wave, the picture and sound aresynchronously provided to the user.

At least one of the picture signal output section 14 and the audiosignal output section 16 may be separated from the recording andreproducing apparatus 1. For example, the picture signal may bewirelessly transmitted to the picture signal output section 14 disposedindependently from the recording and reproducing apparatus 1 and thepicture signal may be reproduced from the picture signal output section14.

The human body sensing data processing section 17 converts information(hereinafter, the information is sometimes referred to as human bodysensing data) detected by a human body sensor 24 (that will be describedlater) into an electric signal and records the converted human bodysensing data. In this embodiment, the human body sensing data arebiological information such as electrocardiogram, breathing rate,breathing cycle, electromyogram, cerebral blood flow, brain wave, amountof perspiration, cutaneous temperature, pupil diameter, eye openingdegree, limb temperature, body surface temperature, changes ofappearance, and changes of blinking. Each data record of the human bodysensing data is identified by the user ID of each user. The human bodysensing data recorded by the human body sensing data processing section17 are supplied to the sensing meta data generating section 19.

The environmental sensing data processing section 18 convertsinformation (hereinafter this information sometimes referred to asenvironmental sensing data) detected by an environmental sensor 25 (thatwill be described later) into an electric signal and records theconverted environmental sensing data. In this case, the environmentalsensing data are at least one of temperature, humidity, airflow volume,atmospheric pressure, weather, location, and so forth. Each data recordof the environmental sensing data is identified by the user ID of eachuser. The environmental sensing data recorded by the environmentalsensing data processing section 18 are supplied to the sensing meta datagenerating section 19.

The sensing meta data generating section 19 generates sensing meta datausing at least one of the human body sensing data and the environmentalsensing data that have been supplied. The sensing meta data generatingsection 19 generates sensing meta data that represent the user's emotionor changes of the user's emotion that occurs when content is reproducedusing for example the supplied human body sensing data. In addition, thesensing meta data generating section 19 generates sensing meta data thatrepresent a user's surrounding environment that occurs when content isreproduced using the supplied environmental sensing meta data.

Specifically, the sensing meta data generating section 19 collates forexample changes of the heart rate and changes of the appearance such asmovement of the lips, blinking of eyes, and so forth obtained from thehuman body sensing data with data stored in the pattern storage section22 and determines the user's emotion (joy, sadness, surprise, anger, andso forth) in a particular region of content. The sensing meta datagenerating section 19 generates sensing meta data that represent changesof the user's emotion in for example an XML (eXtensible Markup Language)format. In this embodiment, the pattern storage section 22 is preferablycomposed of a nonvolatile memory such as a HDD and stores emotionalpatterns corresponding to changes of human body sensing data. Thepattern storage section 22 stores for example changes of heart rate,changes of amount of perspiration, changes of body surface temperature,and so forth of the user and patterns of the emotion such as excitement,stress, calmness, and so forth corresponding to these changes.

In addition, the sensing meta data generating section 19 can collate forexample the amount of perspiration, increase rate of heart rate, andchanges of diameter of pupil obtained from the human body sending datawith data stored in the pattern storage section 22 and determine theuser's emotion such as surprise, stress, and so forth. The sensing metadata generating section 19 generates sensing meta data that representthe determined user's emotion.

In addition, the sensing meta data generating section 19 generatessensing meta data that represent the user's surrounding environment thatoccurs when content is reproduced using the environmental sensing data.The sensing meta data generating section 19 generates sensing meta datathat describe for example temperature, humidity, airflow amount,atmospheric pressure, and weather (fine, cloudiness, rain, snow, storm,and so forth) in the XML format. With respect to the location at whichthe user stays when content is reproduced, the sensing meta datagenerating section 19 generates information of for example latitude andlongitude.

A content ID that identifies content that the reproducing controlsection 12 normally reproduces is supplied to the sensing meta datagenerating section 19. As a content ID, for example the title of contentis used. The sensing meta data generating section 19 supplies thesensing meta data, user ID, and content ID to the recording processingsection 20.

The recording processing section 20 performs processes of converting thesupplied sensing meta data, user ID, and content ID into those in aformat suitable for the record medium 21, correlating the convertedsensing meta data and so forth with content, and recording the resultantdata to the record medium 21. The recording processing section 20performs a recording process corresponding to the record medium 21. Therecord medium 21 is a recordable optical disc or a rewritable opticaldisc, for example, a CD-R (Recordable), a CD-RW (Rewritable), a DVD-R,or a DVD-RW, or a magnetic tape. Instead, the record medium 21 may be astorage medium such as a semiconductor memory or a HDD built in therecording and reproducing apparatus 1.

The reproducing processing section 23 performs a process of reproducingsensing meta data recorded in the record medium 21. The reproducingprocessing section 23 performs a process of reproducing sensing metadata from the record medium 21 corresponding to the user ID and contentID that the user has specified and input. The reproducing processingsection 23 performs a reproducing process suitable for the record medium21. When the reproducing processing section 23 performs the reproducingprocess, the reproducing processing section 23 reproduces sensing metadata from the record medium 21 and supplies the reproduced sensing metadata to the reproducing control section 12.

Next, the human body sensor 24 and the environmental sensor 25 will bedescribed. The human body sensor 24 that is an example of the biologicalinformation measurement section is a device that is worn on the body ofthe user of content and that measures various types of human bodysensing data. Of course, the human body sensor 24 may have additionalfunctions such as a clock function as well as the function of measuringhuman body sensing data. In this embodiment, the human body sensor 24can wirelessly communicate with the recording and reproducing apparatus1 and transmit the measured human body sensing data to the recording andreproducing apparatus 1.

The human body sensor 24 is not limited to a device worn on the body ofthe user of content. Examples of the human body sensor 24 include animaging device that is disposed in the recording and reproducingapparatus 1 and that photographs the appearance of the user and aninfrared thermography that measures the body surface temperature of theuser.

The environmental sensor 25 that is an example of the environmentmeasuring section is composed of a thermometer, a humidity meter, anairflow volume meter, a barometer, an imaging device (that determinesthe weather), and so forth. The environmental sensor 25 may be worn onthe body of the user or attached to the recording and reproducingapparatus 1. The environmental sensor 25 also includes a GPS (GlobalPositioning System) reception terminal or the like that detectsenvironmental sensing data that represent a location. Thus, theenvironmental sensor 25 can identify the location at which the user isviewing and/or listening to content with the GPS. Instead, a locationregistration signal that is communicated between a user's mobile phoneand a base station may be received such that the location at whichcontent is being reproduced is identified.

Next, a specific example of which sensing meta data generated by thesensing meta data generating section 19 are recorded to the recordmedium 21 will be described. In the following specific example, contentis picture content that is supplied from the content providing section11 and whose information changes on the time axis. The human body sensor24 is a wristwatch type heart rate meter that has both a wristwatchfunction and a heart rate meter function. The human body sensor 24measures for example the heart rate of the user as human body sendingmeta data. In this embodiment, the heart rate means the number of beatsper minute (BPM). The heat rate measured by the human body sensor 24 iswirelessly transmitted to the recording and reproducing apparatus 1along with the user ID that represents the user of the human body sensor24.

In addition, it is assumed that times counted by the recording andreproducing apparatus 1 match times counted by the human body sensor 24.When the recording and reproducing apparatus 1 and the human body sensor24 receive a radio wave that represents the standard time, times countedby the recording and reproducing apparatus 1 can be matched with timescounted by the human body sensor 24. Instead, when the standard time isobtained through the Internet, times counted by the recording andreproducing apparatus 1 can be matched with times counted by the humanbody sensor 24.

The content providing section 11 supplies picture content. Thereproducing control section 12 performs a normal reproducing process forthe supplied content. The picture signal processing section 13 and theaudio signal processing section 15 perform a decoding process and soforth. The picture signal output section 14 reproduces a picture. Theaudio signal output section 16 reproduces a sound. While the picturesignal output section 14 and the audio signal output section 16reproduce content, the human body sensor 24 measures the heart rate.

FIG. 2 shows exemplary heart rates of user A measured by the human bodysensor 24. The human body sensor 24 samples the heart rates at intervalsof a predetermined time period or a predetermined cycle. In addition,the human body sensor 24 counts times at which the heart rates aremeasured. In this example, as shown in FIG. 2, heart rate “72” wasmeasured at time “2006-2-3 20:47:10 (in the order of year, month, day,hour, minute, second)”. Other heart rates were measured in associationwith information of times.

The human body sensor 24 transmits the user ID that identifies user A,the heart rate of user A measured when content is reproduced in thenormal reproducing mode, and information of times at which the heartrates are measured (hereinafter these information is sometimes referredto as the user ID and so forth) to the recording and reproducingapparatus 1. As the user ID, the serial number assigned to the humanbody sensor 24 or a number that user A has input may be used. Therecording and reproducing apparatus 1 receives the user ID and so forthand supplies them to the human body sensing data processing section 17.The human body sensing data processing section 17 converts the user IDand so forth transmitted from the human body sensor 24 into an electricsignal and records the converted user ID and so forth. The recorded userID and so forth are supplied to the sensing meta data generating section19.

On the other hand, the recording and reproducing apparatus 1 can countthe present time with its built-in clock circuit or the like. Inaddition, the reproducing control section 12 can obtain information ofreproducing positions of picture content that the recording andreproducing apparatus 1 is reproducing in the normal reproducing mode.FIG. 3 shows exemplary reproducing positions of picture contentcorresponding to information of times that the recording and reproducingapparatus 1 is counting. For example, time “2006-2-3 20:47:10” countedby the recording and reproducing apparatus 1 corresponds to reproducingposition “00:15:20” of picture content.

The sensing meta data generating section 19 determines information oftimes at which heart rates were measured and the reproducing positionscorresponding to the information of times and associates the reproducingpositions of the picture content with the measured heart rates. Asdescribed with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the human body sensor 24measured for example heart rate “72” and reproducing position “00:15:20”at time “2006-2-3 20:47:10”. Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, reproducingposition “00:15:20” of the picture content is associated with heart rate“72”. Likewise, other measured heart rates are associated withreproducing positions of the picture content.

The sensing meta data generating section 19 references past patternsstored in the pattern storage section 22 and extracts a user's emotioncorresponding to changes of the heart rate from the pattern storagesection 22. For example, the sensing meta data generating section 19searches past patterns stored in the pattern storage section 22 for apattern similar to the user's emotion. The sensing meta data generatingsection 19 extracts an emotion corresponding to the retrieved pattern asa user's emotion that occurs when content is reproduced.

For example, in a region from reproducing position “00:15:20” toreproducing position “00:15:40” of picture content corresponding tochanges of heart rate “72” to heart rate “75”, since the heart rateslightly increased, it is thought that the user was excited when picturecontent was reproduced. In a region from reproducing position “00:15:40”to reproducing position “00:16:00” of picture content corresponding tochanges of heart rate “75” to heart rate “71”, since the heart ratedecreased, it is thought that the user was calm when picture content wasreproduced. At reproducing position “01:20:40” of picture content, sincethe heart rate was as high as 82, it is thought that the user wassurprised.

Thereafter, the sensing meta data generating section 19 generatessensing meta data that represent the reproducing positions of picturecontent, the reproducing regions of picture content, and correspondinguser's emotions. The sensing meta data generated by the sensing metadata generating section 19 are supplied to the recording processingsection 20. In addition, the sensing meta data generating section 19supplies the user ID that identifies user A who is a user of contentreproduced in the normal reproducing mode and the content ID thatidentifies picture content reproduced in the normal reproducing mode tothe recording processing section 20.

The recording processing section 20 converts the supplied sensing metadata, user ID, and content ID into those in a format suitable for therecord medium 21. The resultant sensing meta data, user ID, and contentID that have been converted in the format suitable for the record medium21 by the recording process of the recording processing section 20 arerecorded to the record medium 21.

In the foregoing, a specific example of which sensing meta data aregenerated using human body sensing data such as a heart rate wasdescribed. Instead, sensing meta data may be generated usingenvironmental sensing data. When sensing meta data are generated usingenvironmental sensing data that represent for example temperature,humidity, airflow volume, weather, and/or location are used, it is notnecessary to measure these data in the chronological order.

In addition, content such as photos whose information does not change onthe time axis and meta data generated from environmental sensing datamay be recorded to the record medium 21. In the process of recordingsensing meta data, information of times may not be essential.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a flow of a process of recording sensingmeta data according to an embodiment of the present invention. In theprocess described with reference to FIG. 5, it is assumed that contentis audio content.

At step S1, a process of reproducing content is performed. In otherwords, the reproducing processing section 12 performs a normalreproducing process for audio content supplied from the contentproviding section 11. The audio signal processing section 15 performs adecoding process and other processes for audio content that has beenreproduced. The audio signal output section 16 reproduces audio contentfor the user. After the content reproducing process has been completed,the flow advances to step S2.

At step S2, the sensing process is started. In other words, at least oneof user's human body sensing data that occur when content is reproducedand environmental sensing data that occur when content is reproduced aremeasured using at least one of the human body sensor 24 and theenvironmental sensor 25. The measured human body sensing data aresupplied to the human body sensing data processing section 17. Themeasured environmental sensing data are supplied to the environmentalsensing data processing section 18. At least one of the human bodysensing data and environmental sensing data that have been processed bythe human body sensing data processing section 17 and the environmentalsensing data processing section 18 is supplied to the sensing meta datagenerating section 19.

It is preferred that the sensing process at step S2 be started when thereproduction of content is started. Instead, the sensing process may bestarted while content is being reproduced. After the sensing process hasbeen started, the flow advances to step S3.

At step S3, the sensing meta data generating section 19 performs aprocess of generating sensing meta data. The sensing meta datagenerating section 19 generates sensing meta data using at least one ofhuman body sensing data supplied from the human body sensing dataprocessing section 17 and environmental sensing meta data supplied fromthe environmental sensing data processing section 18. When the sensingmeta data have been generated, the flow advances to step S4.

At step S4, a process of recording the generated sensing meta data isperformed. The sensing meta data generated at step S3 are supplied tothe recording processing section 20. In addition, a user ID thatidentifies the user of content that is normally reproduced and a contentID that identifies content that is normally reproduced are supplied tothe recording processing section 20. The recording processing section 20converts the sensing meta data, user ID, and content ID into those in aformat suitable for the record medium 21. The converted sensing metadata, user ID, and content ID are recorded to the record medium 21.

Next, a process of reproducing sensing meta data and so forth from therecord medium 21 will be described. FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing aflow of a reproducing process according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

At step S11, a process of obtaining sensing meta data is performed. Forexample, the user inputs a user ID and a content ID. The user ID andcontent ID that have been input are specified for the reproducingprocessing section 23. The reproducing processing section 23 reproducessensing meta data corresponding to the specified user ID and content IDfrom the record medium 21. The reproduced sensing meta data are suppliedto the reproducing control section 12. Thereafter, the flow advances tostep S12.

At step S12, a process of obtaining content is performed. The content IDthat the user has input is specified for the content providing section11. The content providing section 11 supplies content corresponding tothe specified content ID to the reproducing control section 12. Forexample, the content providing section 11 accesses a contentdistribution server and downloads content identified by the content IDtherefrom. The downloaded content is supplied to the reproducing controlsection 12. If the content providing section 11 is not able to providecontent identified by the content ID, for example the picture signaloutput section 14 displays an error message or the audio signal outputsection 16 generates an alarm sound. Thereafter, the flow advances tostep S13.

At step S13, a process of reproducing content is performed. At step S13,the reproducing control section 12 performs a process of reproducingcontent in other than the normal reproducing mode. Namely, thereproduction control section 12 performs a process of reproducingcontent supplied from the content providing section 11 in a reproducingmode corresponding to sensing meta data supplied from the reproducingcontrol section 12. Next, an example of a process of reproducing contentin a reproducing mode corresponding to sensing meta data will bedescribed.

When content is picture content, the reproducing control section 12changes its luminance level, contrast, and/or hue corresponding to auser's emotion at a reproducing position or in a reproducing region ofthe picture content described in the sensing meta data. When content isaudio content, the reproducing control section 12 changes its frequencycharacteristic and/or sound volume level and/or creates a sound effectfor the audio content corresponding to a user's emotion in a particularregion of the audio content described in the sensing meta data. A scenecorresponding to a reproducing position of content determined to havebeen excited may be reproduced as a digest reproducing mode. Thus,content can be reproduced such that a scene with which a user's emotionchanged is emphasized.

Picture content that has been processed by the reproducing controlsection 12 is supplied to the picture signal processing section 13.Audio content that has been processed by the reproducing control section12 is supplied to the audio signal processing section 15. The picturesignal processing section 13 and the audio signal processing section 15perform a decoding process and so forth. Picture content and audiocontent are reproduced from the picture signal output section 14 and theaudio signal output section 16, respectively, in a reproducing modecorresponding to the sensing meta data.

When sensing meta data are composed of environmental sensing meta data,the reproducing control section 12 reproduces content such that the usercan recognize a surrounding environment specified by the sensing metadata.

When content is picture content, the reproducing control section 12superimposes picture content with data that represent temperature,humidity, location, and so forth obtained from the sensing meta data.The picture signal processing section 13 performs a decoding process andso forth for the picture content superimposed with such data. Thepicture content for which the decoding process and so forth have beenperformed is output to the picture signal output section 14. At thispoint, the picture signal output section 14 reproduces together with thepicture content the character information that represents temperature,humidity, location, and so forth that occurred when the same picturecontent was reproduced. Thus, the user can recognize the surroundingenvironment that occurred when the picture content was reproduced in thepast.

When content is audio content, the reproducing control section 12performs for example the following processes. When sensing meta dataspecify that the weather that occurred when audio content was reproducedin the past was rain and strong wind, the reproducing control section 12superimposes audio content with data of sounds of rain and wind. Thereproduction control section 12 supplies the audio content superimposedwith data of sounds of rain and wind to the audio signal processingsection 15. The audio signal processing section 15 performs a decodingprocess and so forth for the audio content. The audio content that hasbeen processed is reproduced from the audio signal output section 16. Atthis point, when the user hears sounds of rain and wind together withthe audio content, he or she can recognize his or her surroundingenvironment that occurred when the audio content was reproduced in thepast. When the user recognizes his or her surrounding environment thatoccurred when the audio content was reproduced in the past, he or shecan remember a memory in association with the audio content.

Instead, the reproducing control section 12 may control the contentproviding section 11 to download data of sounds of rain and wind througha network. The downloaded data of sounds of rain and wind are suppliedfrom the content providing section 11 to the reproducing control section12. The reproducing control section 12 superimposes audio content withdata of sounds of rain and wind.

When sensing meta data that represent a location at which the userstayed when audio content was reproduced in the past have been recordedin the record medium 21, the audio content may be reproduced in thefollowing manner. The reproducing control section 12 and the audiosignal processing section 15 perform predetermined processes for audiocontent provided from the content providing section 11 or the recordmedium 21. The audio signal output section 16 reproduces the resultantaudio content.

Sensing meta data that represent a location at which the user stayedwhen audio content was reproduced in the past are obtained by thereproducing process of the reproducing processing section 23. Theobtained sensing data are supplied to the reproducing control section12. The reproducing control section 12 controls the content providingsection 11 to obtain data of photos of surrounding scenes for examplemountains, rivers, forests, seashores, and so forth of the location atwhich the user stayed when audio content was reproduced in the pastcorresponding to the sensing meta data. For example, the reproducingcontrol section 12 accesses a server that distributes photos to obtaindata of photos of various scenes therefrom. Data of photos that havebeen obtained are supplied from the content providing section 11 to thereproducing control section 12.

Data of photos are supplied from the reproducing control section 12 tothe picture signal processing section 13. The picture signal processingsection 13 performs a decoding process and so forth. Data of photos thathave been processed are supplied to the picture signal output section14. The picture signal output section 14 reproduces scenes such asmountains, rivers, forests, seashores, and so forth. While the user isviewing scenes reproduced by the picture signal output section 14, he orshe listens to audio content. Thus, the user can recognize surroundingscenes that occurred when audio content was reproduced in the past. As aresult, the user can remember a memory in association with the audiocontent.

When content is reproduced in a reproducing mode corresponding tosensing meta data, the user can recognize changes of his or her emotionthat occurred when the content was reproduced in the past. In addition,a user's surrounding environment that occurred when content wasreproduced in the past can be caused to recur. Thus, the user canremember a memory in association with the content.

The processes described with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 may bestructured as a recording and reproducing method of recording sensingmeta data and reproducing content in a reproducing mode corresponding tothe recorded sensing meta data.

Although embodiments of the present invention were specificallydescribed, the present invention is not limited to the foregoingembodiments. Instead, various types of modifications based on the spiritof the art of the present invention may be made.

In the foregoing embodiments, the present invention was described as arecoding and reproducing apparatus. Instead, the present invention maybe applied to a recording apparatus that records sensing meta datagenerated when content is normally reproduced. Instead, the presentinvention may be applied to a reproducing apparatus that reproducescontent in a reproducing mode corresponding to sensing meta datarecorded to a record medium.

Although a process of normally reproducing content and a process ofreproducing content in a reproducing mode corresponding to sensing metadata are performed in the reproducing control section 12, they may beselected by the user.

When the content providing section 11 is a recordable or rewritableoptical disc or a semiconductor memory, generated sensing meta data maybe recorded to the content providing section 11.

Each means that composes an apparatus of the present invention may bestructured by a dedicated hardware circuit, software, or a programmedcomputer. A program that describes a sequence of steps of a process maybe recorded to a record medium such as a magnetic recoding device, anoptical disc, an optical-magnetic disc, a semiconductor memory, or thelike from which a computer can read the program.

As described above, according to the present invention, changes of auser's emotion that occur when content is reproduced and surroundingenvironment that occurs when content is reproduced can be recorded assensing meta data to a record medium such as an optical disc or asemiconductor memory. When content is reproduced corresponding tosensing meta data that have been recorded, changes of a user's emotionthat occurred when content was reproduced in the past and a user'ssurrounding environment that occurred when the content was reproduced inthe past can be caused to recur. When changes of a user's emotion and auser's surrounding environment are caused to recur, he or she canremember a memory in association with content.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A recording and reproducing apparatuscomprising: a content providing section that provides entertainmentcontent comprising a movie, music, and/or a photo; a biologicalinformation measuring section that measures at least one user'sbiological information while the entertainment content is reproduced; anenvironment measuring section that measures at least one environmentalcharacteristic of the at least one user's surrounding environment whilethe entertainment content is reproduced, the at least one environmentalcharacteristic being selected from the group consisting of temperature,humidity, airflow volume, atmospheric pressure, weather, and location; asensing metadata generating section that generates sensing metadatausing information detected by the biological information measuringsection and the environment measuring section; a recording processingsection that records in at least one storage medium the sensing metadataand the entertainment content such that the sensing metadata areassociated with the entertainment content, and such that the at leastone measured environmental characteristic is associated with theentertainment content that was being reproduced when the at least oneenvironmental characteristic was measured; and a reproducing controllingsection that reproduces the entertainment content a second timedifferent from the first time, in an enhanced reproducing mode adapted,based on the sensing metadata, to reinforce the at least one user'smemory of changes of the at least one user's emotion that occurred whilethe entertainment content was reproduced the first time and/or the atleast one user's surrounding environment that was measured while theentertainment content was reproduced the first time, wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises adjusting one or more features within the entertainmentcontent to cause the memory to recur.
 2. The recording and reproducingapparatus of claim 1, wherein the entertainment content comprisespicture content, and wherein reproducing the entertainment content thesecond time in the enhanced reproducing mode comprises changing aluminance level, contrast, and/or hue of the picture contentcorresponding to the at least one user's emotion at a reproducingposition and/or in a reproducing region of the picture content describedin the sensing metadata.
 3. The recording and reproducing apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the entertainment content comprises audio content, andwherein reproducing the entertainment content the second time in theenhanced reproducing mode comprises changing a frequency characteristicand/or a sound volume level and/or creating a sound effect for the audiocontent corresponding to the at least one user's emotion in a particularregion of the audio content described in the sensing metadata.
 4. Areproducing apparatus that reproduces entertainment content comprising amovie, music, and/or a photo, the reproducing apparatus comprising: areproducing processing section that reproduces sensing metadata from atleast one storage medium, wherein the sensing metadata was generatedusing biological information measured from at least one user while theentertainment content was reproduced a first time and/or environmentalinformation measured from the at least one user's surroundingenvironment while the entertainment content was reproduced the firsttime; and a reproducing controlling section that reproduces theentertainment content a second time different from the first time, in anenhanced reproducing mode adapted, based on the sensing metadata, toreinforce the at least one user's memory of changes of the at least oneuser's emotion that occurred while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time and/or the at least one user's surroundingenvironment that was measured while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time, wherein reproducing the entertainment contentthe second time in the enhanced reproducing mode comprises adjusting oneor more features within the entertainment content to cause the memory torecur.
 5. The reproducing apparatus as set forth in claim 4, wherein thereproducing controlling section reproduces the entertainment contentsuch that the at least one user of the entertainment content is capableof recognizing the at least one user's surrounding environment specifiedby the sensing metadata.
 6. A recording and reproducing apparatus,comprising: a content providing section that provides entertainmentcontent comprising a movie, music, and/or a photo; a biologicalinformation measuring section that measures at least one user'sbiological information while the entertainment content is reproduced afirst time and/or an environment measuring section that measures the atleast one user's surrounding environment while the entertainment contentis reproduced the first time; a sensing metadata generating section thatgenerates sensing metadata using information detected by the biologicalinformation measuring section and/or the environment measuring section;a recording processing section that records in at least one storagemedium the sensing metadata in association with the entertainmentcontent; and a reproducing controlling section that reproduces theentertainment content a second time different from the first time, in anenhanced reproducing mode adapted, based on the sensing metadata, toreinforce the at least one user's memory of changes of the at least oneuser's emotion that occurred while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time and/or the at least one user's surroundingenvironment that was measured while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time, wherein reproducing the entertainment contentthe second time in the enhanced reproducing mode comprises adjusting oneor more features within the entertainment content to cause the memory torecur.
 7. The recording and reproducing apparatus as set forth in claim6, wherein the reproducing controlling section reproduces theentertainment content such that the at least one user of theentertainment content is capable of recognizing the at least one user'ssurrounding environment specified by the sensing metadata.
 8. Therecording and reproducing apparatus of claim 6, wherein theentertainment content comprises picture content, and wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises changing a luminance level, contrast, and/or hue of thepicture content corresponding to the at least one user's emotion at areproducing position and/or in a reproducing region of the picturecontent described in the sensing metadata.
 9. The recording andreproducing apparatus of claim 6, wherein the entertainment contentcomprises audio content, and wherein reproducing the entertainmentcontent the second time in the enhanced reproducing mode compriseschanging a frequency characteristic and/or a sound volume level and/orcreating a sound effect for the audio content corresponding to the atleast one user's emotion in a particular region of the audio contentdescribed in the sensing metadata.
 10. A recording and reproducingmethod, comprising: generating, using at least one computer, sensingmetadata using at least one user's biological information measured whileentertainment content comprising a movie, music, and/or a photo isreproduced and environmental information measured from the at least oneuser's surrounding environment while the entertainment content isreproduced, the environmental information comprising at least onemeasurement of at least one characteristic selected from the groupconsisting of temperature, humidity, airflow volume, atmosphericpressure, weather, and location; recording in at least one storagemedium the sensing metadata and the entertainment content such that thesensing metadata are associated with the entertainment content, and suchthat the environmental information is associated with the entertainmentcontent that was being reproduced when the environmental information wasmeasured; and reproducing the entertainment content a second timedifferent from the first time, in an enhanced reproducing mode adapted,based on the sensing metadata, to reinforce the at least one user'smemory of changes of the at least one user's emotion that occurred whilethe entertainment content was reproduced the first time and/or the atleast one user's surrounding environment that was measured while theentertainment content was reproduced the first time, wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises adjusting one or more features within the entertainmentcontent to cause the memory to recur.
 11. The recording and reproducingmethod of claim 10, wherein the entertainment content comprises picturecontent, and wherein reproducing the entertainment content the secondtime in the enhanced reproducing mode comprises changing a luminancelevel, contrast, and/or hue of the picture content corresponding to theat least one user's emotion at a reproducing position and/or in areproducing region of the picture content described in the sensingmetadata.
 12. The recording and reproducing method of claim 10, whereinthe entertainment content comprises audio content, and whereinreproducing the entertainment content the second time in the enhancedreproducing mode comprises changing a frequency characteristic and/or asound volume level and/or creating a sound effect for the audio contentcorresponding to the at least one user's emotion in a particular regionof the audio content described in the sensing metadata.
 13. Areproducing method of reproducing entertainment content comprising amovie, music, and/or a photo, the reproducing method comprising:reproducing from a storage medium sensing metadata generated usingbiological information measured from at least one user while theentertainment content was reproduced a first time and/or environmentalinformation measured from the at least one user's surroundingenvironment while the entertainment content was reproduced the firsttime; and reproducing the entertainment content a second time differentfrom the first time, in an enhanced reproducing mode adapted, based onthe sensing metadata, to reinforce the at least one user's memory ofchanges of the at least one user's emotion that occurred while theentertainment content was reproduced the first time and/or the at leastone user's surrounding environment that was measured while theentertainment content was reproduced the first time, wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises adjusting one or more features within the entertainmentcontent to cause the memory to recur.
 14. A recording and reproducingmethod, comprising: generating sensing metadata using biologicalinformation measured from at least one user while entertainment contentcomprising a movie, music, and/or a photo is reproduced a first timeand/or environmental information measured from the at least one user'ssurrounding environment while the entertainment content is reproducedthe first time; recording in at least one storage medium the sensingmeta data and the entertainment content such that the sensing metadataare associated with the entertainment content; and reproducing theentertainment content a second time different from the first time, in anenhanced reproducing mode adapted, based on the sensing metadata, toreinforce the at least one user's memory of changes of the at least oneuser's emotion that occurred while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time and/or the at least one user's surroundingenvironment that was measured while the entertainment content wasreproduced the first time, wherein reproducing the entertainment contentthe second time in the enhanced reproducing mode comprises adjusting oneor more features within the entertainment content to cause the memory torecur.
 15. The recording and reproducing method of claim 14, wherein theentertainment content comprises picture content, and wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises changing a luminance level, contrast, and/or hue of thepicture content corresponding to the at least one user's emotion at areproducing position and/or in a reproducing region of the picturecontent described in the sensing metadata.
 16. The recording andreproducing method of claim 14, wherein the entertainment contentcomprises audio content, and wherein reproducing the entertainmentcontent the second time in the enhanced reproducing mode compriseschanging a frequency characteristic and/or a sound volume level and/orcreating a sound effect for the audio content corresponding to the atleast one user's emotion in a particular region of the audio contentdescribed in the sensing metadata.
 17. At least one computer-readablestorage medium storing program instructions for causing a computer to:reproduce sensing metadata generated using at least one user'sbiological information measured while entertainment content comprising amovie, music, and/or a photo was reproduced a first time andenvironmental information measured from the at least one user'ssurrounding environment while the entertainment content was reproducedthe first time; and reproduce the entertainment content a second timedifferent from the first time, in an enhanced reproducing mode adapted,based on the sensing metadata, to reinforce the at least one user'smemory of changes of the at least one user's emotion that occurred whilethe entertainment content was reproduced the first time and/or the atleast one user's surrounding environment that was measured while theentertainment content was reproduced the first time, wherein reproducingthe entertainment content the second time in the enhanced reproducingmode comprises adjusting one or more features within the entertainmentcontent to cause the memory to recur.